$350,000 in fines avoided in plumbing amnesty

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19 February 2015

A Brisbane plumber has been spared potential fines of $350,000 by taking advantage of the amnesty for notifiable plumbing works currently being offered by the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC).

The amnesty has been offered to plumber and drainer contractor licensees who have not submitted notifiable work registrations (Form 4s or Form 4As) for work undertaken since 1 November 2012.

QBCC Commissioner, Steve Griffin, said the amnesty, which concludes on 31 March, came about in part because data-matching revealed a sizable gap between notifiable work registrations and the sale of plumbing supplies and activity in the plumbing and drainage sector.

“One licensee being investigated by the QBCC Plumbing and Pools unit admitted that he had failed to lodge more than 600 Form 4s for work he had done over the past two years,” Mr Griffin said.

“Instead of penalising him, we came to an agreement under the terms of the amnesty that he lodge the outstanding forms for the work he has done and pay the appropriate fees, which came to more than $15,000.”

Mr Griffin said that when the amnesty concluded, the QBCC would include plumbers and plumbing and drainage work in its regular compliance audits throughout the State.

The majority of the licensee’s work was in hot-water heater replacements.

“This is a great example of how licensees can work with us to help them to comply with their requirements, whether they are in regard to notifiable works or other areas,” Mr Griffin said.